


Umbra

by bobbysghost



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Anxiety, Avengers Tower, Canon Divergence - Avengers (2012), F/M, Hurt Steve Rogers, Hurt Tony Stark, Love Triangles, OC Is A Smartarse, OC has anxiety, Pepper Potts Doesnt Exist, Protective Steve Rogers, Protective Tony Stark, Steve Rogers and the 21st Century, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, oc is an avenger, oc is british
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 19:33:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29889447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bobbysghost/pseuds/bobbysghost
Summary: Grey Caron lives a relatively normal life - well, how normal can it be when you're invisible? Dragged into the Avengers Initiative by Nick Fury, Grey suddenly has to come to terms with the fact that Earth is under attack, and she is one of the lucky few chosen to protect it. Alongside having to fight an actual God, Grey has to battle her own emotions at the same time[Avengers (2012) rewrite including OC]
Relationships: Avengers Team & Original Female Character(s), Steve Rogers/Original Female Character(s), Tony Stark/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 13





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters apart from Grey Caron. I have no claim over the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D., Tesco, or the Avengers (2012). This is purely a work of fanfiction.  
> -  
> Hey hey hey. If you're new here, welcome, this is my take on the Avengers with my own OC included. If you recognise this story, it's because I posted it about three years ago (with a sequel!). However, during quarantine I've decided to rework all the works in this series and hopefully begin to write further instalments. This is the first Avengers (2012), and I will be beginning to rework/finish AOU soon! I hope you all enjoy :)

Director Nick Fury walked up the steps to the small, rundown apartment, of which’s door graced the space in front of him. London, England was never Fury’s favourite place to be for an extended period of time; the tourists, the crowds, and the rain were just some of the annoyances of the city, but he knew the reason he was there was more important than his own pet peeves.

As he stood at the door, he glanced down at the files in his hand, one labelled ‘ _the Avenger Initiative_ ’ and the other, ‘ _Dr. Grey Caron / Umbra_ ’. Fury sighed as he flicked through the second file, pausing at several old photos showing a young girl, newspaper clippings (all seemingly describing the same laboratory fire), and strange photos on what appeared to be floating clothes. The latter photos appeared to all have been taken through the window of the flat Fury was currently standing before.

Fury eventually moved to knock at the door, but as he raised his hand, the door opened. Before him, a woman stood. She looked to be in her late 20s; the bags under her eyes were telling of her age, but she still held an air of mischievous youthfulness. Long, brown hair fell down her back and framed her face, where dark eyes looked up at Fury suspiciously. Fury took in her outfit – a plain jumper and a pair of leggings; she obviously wasn’t expecting company.

Fury cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow, taking in the woman in front of him before he started to speak. “Miss Caron, I presume?”

“Doctor, actually,” she didn’t move from the doorway, “who wants to know?”

Her accent was light, and distinctly British. Fury had to admit, it sounded a lot more graceful against his own grating, New York tone.

“Director Fury, here on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D.”

Dr. Caron stared at Fury silently, as if she were assessing him. Her eyes focused on the black patch that replaced his left eye, “what do you want, Director Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D.?” Her words were laced with a dark amusement, and she couldn’t help but remind Fury of someone else.

He didn’t say anything, but merely held up a photo from the file. It depicted a floating sports bra and gym leggings, alongside a banana hovering in mid-air, half of it having been eaten. He raised his eyebrows as Caron’s eyes widened at the photo – her cheeks paled slightly, and she moved aside.

“I guess you should come in.”

The flat that Fury entered wasn’t anything special. A typical, London, one bedroom apartment with just enough room to swing a cat (Fury hated cats). One thing he did notice, though, was that there were no photos. No framed images of family, friends – nothing. Of course, he already knew there wouldn’t be – it meant she would be more likely to say yes.

As Fury walked into her flat, Grey Caron’s mind was reeling. She cursed herself. She’d spent the last three years being as careful as she could be, but she still couldn’t shake them. Of course she knew what S.H.I.E.L.D. was; she watched the news. She just didn’t think they’d be low enough to photograph her inside her own home.

“Why do you have that photo?” Grey asked as she shut the door behind the director. Her apprehension towards the man was growing as he stayed silent, “why am I suddenly a target? I haven’t done anything to warrant an arrest – at least, I don’t think I have.”

“We’ve been keeping tabs on you, Dr. Caron. For three years now,” Fury slapped the two files down on the coffee table between the two sofas and sat down, looking up at Grey, who continued to stand, an eyebrow cocked curiously at the files, “we started after the accident at the Palynological Laboratory, and we’ve continued ever since. Did you know that event made it all the way to America?”

“Why are you keeping tabs on me?” Grey’s eyebrows dipped in a frown, and her words were cut with exasperation, “I’ve been quiet, I haven’t caused any trouble. I have a job, a home, I’m living a perfectly normal life. I’m not even working in a lab anymore; I’m doing nightshifts at the Tesco down the street. It’s a fall from grace, I’ll tell you that.”

It was obvious to Fury that she was angry at the sudden corner he’d pushed her into, but that’s what he needed. He needed that anger.

“But you’re _not_ normal, Grey, that’s why we’ve been tracking you and why I’m here in your home,” Fury explained, “’ _Umbra’_ – that’s why I’m here.”

Grey scoffed, rolling her eyes at his words, “that’s what they’re calling me? Creative. I would’ve preferred something a bit more plucky,” she peered at the files as she sat herself down, “what do ‘ _the Avengers_ ’ have to do with ‘ _Umbra_ ’?”

“It translates to ‘Shadow’, in Latin - it’s fitting, and we want Umbra to join us,” before Grey could say anything, Fury quickly continued despite her glowering expression, “a hostile force has taken a very powerful weapon from us, and we’re bringing together a group of people – enhanced people, like you – to get it back. I know you’re trained up already, which makes you a perfect contender.”

“What people?” Grey asked slowly, “if you had stalked me thoroughly, you should know I prefer my own company. Besides, I’m really not that useful.”

Fury glanced around at the absence of photographs in the room, “I don’t expect you to be buddy-buddy with everyone, just that you work together. We’re bringing in a number of superior humans - it’s all in the file. And trust me, Dr. Caron, your power can help us immensely.”

Grey picked up the folder and flipped through it, choosing to ignore Fury’s compliment. As she did, her eyes landed on one name, and she groaned, “Tony Stark, that insufferable man with the shiny suit?” Of course she knew who Tony Stark was – who didn’t? His kidnapping was worldwide news, it was all anyone could talk about. Frankly, Grey couldn’t see the hype about him; he seemed like an arrogant playboy, in her humble opinion, and her opinion wasn’t that humble.

“His power is something we cannot afford to ignore. You’re not the only one to complain,” Fury let out a dry chuckle and stood up, brushing his hands on his black trousers, “I’ve got a flight back to New York to catch, I don’t particularly want to be in this city longer than I need to. A car will come to collect you at midday,” he took a breath, his expression becoming solemn, “are you ready to become one of Earth’s mightiest heroes?”

“I don’t know, Fury, I’m quite attached to that Tesco.” Grey stood up as well, her face a mask of a calm expression. Fury turned to look at her – he could read her like a book; she was nervous. He needed to convince her.

“I’m not telling you what to do, I can’t legally do that. You can stay here, with your job and your apartment, and we can continue watching you... or you can come with us and maybe make an impact on this Earth. It’s your own choice.”

With those last, lingering words, Fury left, leaving Grey alone with her thoughts and two large piles of paperwork. She sighed, the exhaustion she felt finally showing through as she sat back down on the couch. She rubbed her eyes as she looked down at both files. As her eyes focused on her own folder, bright images of orange, flickering flames invaded her mind. She moved on from the photos of the burnt out laboratory, her skin prickling, and instead glanced over the profile S.H.I.E.L.D. had written for her.

“ _’Martial arts trained, weaponry trained, physically fit… no change in her outward physical appearance_ ’ well, apart from the obvious,” she muttered to herself, “ _’assisting in tracking the Tesseract and physical combat, if needed’_.” Nerves settled themselves deep in Grey’s stomach, and she pushed that one away with an air of disgust, instead opting to open the Avengers profile.

Scenes of gunfire filled her vision as she took everything in. Assassins, billionaires, war heroes... Grey gulped as she continued to read, frowning in disbelief at some of the information written in there. Her work in the scientific field previously already exposed her to some of the themes – she’d worked with Erik Selvig, whose ideas were always a bit crazy, but not _this_ level of crazy.

“Am I really expected to fight with these people?” she mumbled to herself, and already she felt crackles of anxiety running up and down her body. These people were practically engineered for this type of thing – she was just a lab experiment gone wrong.

Though Grey didn’t notice, the lamps surrounding her in her apartment had started to flicker. As she continued to read, her worry about this task grew, and as Grey felt her chest start to tighten in fear, the light bulb next to her suddenly blew.

Grey jumped, her heart beating rapidly in her chest as she stared at the light. All the others had stopped glowing curiously as she focused on the one lamp. She reserved it just to the bulb burning out, but she couldn’t shake the thought that she had something to do with it.

‘ _That’s enough for today._ ’ Grey thought, her breathing finally slowing. She slapped the file back down on the table and headed into her own bedroom. Her mind was full of doubts and questions, ones that could only be answered by actually getting in the car that would be arriving in a few hours.

Grey was still unsure whether to accept Fury’s offer or not. She decided to sleep on it, but throughout the night she tossed and turned, unable to close her eyes without seeing fire and bullets.

In the end, Grey dug out an old suitcase from the bottom of her wardrobe, absentmindedly filling it until it was full. She then sat, simply thinking, until the knock at the door came.


	2. II

“You look like you’re ready to rip that arm rest apart.”

Grey glanced over at the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who was sitting in the seat opposite her, loosening her grip on the seat she was in. The car that came in the morning had taken her to a private airfield where a quinjet was ready to take her directly to the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters. It was Grey’s first time on a plane **,** let alone a private one taking her out of England, and she was _terrified._

Her eyes travelled back to the agent as a distraction. She was extremely pretty, short flame red hair gently brushing against her shoulders and blue eyes which could’ve belonged to a doll. However, Grey knew those eyes could aim a bullet through a targets head, so she didn’t just reserve her as ‘beautiful’. She knew better than that. Natasha had introduced herself with a short smile and a handshake when Grey boarded the plane, and they had spent most of the ride in silence. Grey was running through all of the information she had read over the night before; one of the most talented assassins in the entire world, and one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s most impressive agents, was sat right across from her. It was only a little bit daunting.

Unbeknownst to those around her, Natasha had been doing exactly the same thing. She’d been a little confused when Fury took it upon himself to travel all the way to London – a city he notoriously hated – to recruit this girl, but after reading her file, she understood. Sure, Grey Caron looked completely normal to the normal eye, but her ability was what set her out from nearly every other member on the team. Natasha was the world’s most famous spy, but she couldn’t turn _invisible._ If she could, it would make her job a hell of a lot easier.

“Are you a natural redhead?”

Natasha blinked. Out of every question she could’ve been asked, that wasn’t the one she was expecting. “Yes, I am. Russian genes.”

Grey shifted in her seat, the swooping of the Quinjet making her stomach twist, “that’s nice. My hairs so boring, no colour takes to it. Of course, I could bleach it, but that would destroy it, and I’ve done the whole bald thing – it’s not fun.”

The plane dipped down again, and Grey groaned. Before she could beg Natasha for a sleeping pill or _something,_ a robotic voice sounded from the speakers, which had been previously playing a mellow jazz playlist.

“ _We will be landing in T-minus five minutes. Please stay seated with seatbelts on. The time is 8am, temperature being 68 degrees Fahrenheit_.”

Looking out of the small cabin window, Grey’s mouth dropped. She assumed they were landing inland, but the view from the quinjet was just a vast ocean.

“Where are we landing, the water?” Grey asked incredulously, looking back at Natasha with a confused expression. She didn’t want her first plane ride to have a wet landing.

 **“** Just wait,” she offered Grey a reassuring smile, knowing that she was scared still.

Grey turned her eyes back to the scene before her, still seeing only water. She braced herself for a swim until she felt the wheels of the jet touch down on solid land, which made her even more confused.

“Where are we? I thought we were landing in New York – I wanted to get some touristy stuff in before the gig started.” Grey unbuckled her seatbelt as Natasha did the same. The door of the quinjet opened, letting in streams of bright, undisturbed sunlight which made Grey wince. London was never this sunny.

“Welcome,” Natasha started, gesturing to Grey to start making her way off the quinjet, “to the Helicarrier, the portable S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.”

As Grey made her way off the jet, her eyes grew and she had to consciously stop her jaw from falling open. She was on a military industrial boat in the middle of the vast ocean. Everywhere she looked there where planes similar to the one she was on, and dozens of stoic looking people, obviously other agents. Soldiers jogged over the threshold, and Grey pursed her lips. It reminded her of her past life, and it was oddly nostalgic.

“This way,” Natasha said, glancing in Grey’s direction, “Boss just informed me you’re the first one here, so I’ll show you to your quarters, and then you can be debriefed when the others arrive.”

Grey followed Natasha through the inside of the Helicarrier. She looked around curiously, excitement sparking in her as they passed the laboratories where numerous scientists were using state of the art equipment to carry out their experiments.

Grey hadn’t been anywhere near a science workshop since the fire. She was quiet as they walked past it, unintentionally moving away from the entrance, but she still felt the desire to enter. Natasha noted this; she knew Grey’s past from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s files, and she could understand why she was a little skittish.

The two girls travelled towards a set of rooms, and Natasha pointed Grey into hers. It was a modest sized room; furnished with a bed, a side table, and a chest of draws. There was an attached bathroom which included a shower, so Grey was happy.

She rounded on Natasha with an eyebrow raised, “how long did Fury say this was going to last?”

“As long as it takes,” a dark shadow passed over Natasha’s face, “hopefully not too long; there’s a lot on the line.”

“Yeah, I get that – it’s just that I’ve just remembered I’ve left some yoghurt in the fridge back at home, and that thing’s going to have its own ecosystem by the time I get back.” Grey tucked her hair behind her ear, quietly laughing nervously. In fact, she was completely rethinking her decision to agree to Fury’s proposition; her anxiety was already clawing its way to settle in her chest.

Natasha regarded Grey for a second. It was surprising, honestly, that a random girl from England could be so similar to the most arrogant man in America.

“I’m sure the yoghurt will be fine,” Natasha smiled wryly for a second, “would you like to see your suit?”

Grey stopped and sent Natasha a confused expression, “I don’t know if you heard, but clothes don’t really work with my… condition.”

“I know, we’ve taken it into account.”

Her confusion was obvious on Grey’s face as Natasha pressed a combination of numbers on a keypad which Grey had completely unnoticed. A pair of hidden doors slid open to reveal a deep green cat suit, complete with leather holsters for several guns, knives, and other weapons.

“I’m no scientist, but the designer told me that the atoms in the material have been genetically mixed with the DNA of cuttlefish,” Natasha watched as Grey stroked a finger down the material, “cuttlefish are able to camouflage themselves in any surroundings, and with a bit of tweaking, this suit should render you-”

“-Completely invisible,” Grey finished in a whisper, her eyes wide in shock. She’d never heard of such a thing, yet it was all so obvious when presented in front of her, “this is... truly outstanding scientific work.” Her fingers traced alongside the arm of the suit lovingly but delicately, as if her mere touch would break it.

“Well, you can thank Stark when you see him.”

Grey broke her eyes away from her suit to look at Natasha with a ruffled expression, “Stark?”

“He helped design it.” Natasha supressed a smirk at the look on Grey’s face, “he normally gets that reaction. We have matching boots, and all of the weaponry has been remade with the same tech. Everything should vanish.”

“I take back my compliment,” Grey murmured quietly, turning back, and continuing to assess it, “but how did you know I’d need it? I could’ve refused Fury’s proposition.”

Natasha said simply, “we knew you’d say yes.”

Grey raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth ready to reply with a smartarse comment but Natasha was already out the door. “Try it on, I’ll be back later to bring you to debriefing.”

When the door shut behind her, Grey dived to the suit, ripping off her own clothes in haste to try it on. She had to hand it to Stark – it fit perfectly, gliding over her curves like oil paints on a canvas. Grey looked over herself in the mirror, enjoying how the green contrasted against her skin. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The moment of truth.

When she opened her eyes again, Grey couldn’t see her reflection in the mirror. No shirt resting against invisible shoulders, no socks walking on the floor by themselves, just...

...nothing.

Yet, Grey finally felt powerful.


	3. III

Grey made her way to the control bay of the Helicarrier, still invisible. She lingered at the doors of one laboratory for a while, watching the scientists with bated breath, before moving along. She spied Natasha standing by one of the many computers, and hastily shuffled to stand by her, dropping her invisibility as she went.

The computer showed the face of a man, and Grey looked at it curiously. Above the figure was the name “Clinton F. Barton”. Grey thought back to the reading she’d done the previous night. This was Hawkeye, a fellow ‘Avenger’. Grey noted the large ‘COMPROMISED’ sign over his name.

Natasha cleared her throat, before looking back down at Clint’s face, “my partner. He’s been compromised. He’s part of the reason we’re bringing everyone in,” she sucked in a breath, before regaining her composure, “you should hold on, we’re about to take off.”

“Wait, take off?”

Grey’s dubious repetition was left unanswered as she felt a jerk, and she felt the sensation of going up in an elevator; the twisting in her stomach making her involuntarily vanish again. A computer nearby her sparked and shut off, causing an agent to groan in annoyance. As the Helicarrier straightened out again, Grey reappeared, her face significantly paler than the previous moment.

“You didn’t tell me this thing flew,” she grumbled, “I thought I was safe when I got off the other plane. Any other secrets you’re keeping from me?”

Natasha allowed herself an amused smile, before mentioning “the suit really does… suit you.” Grey shot her a look, before Natasha left, saying something about ‘bringing in the new recruits’.

Looking around, Grey finally had time to fully take in the insides of where she was staying. A large circular stage was placed in the middle of the aircraft, screens and computers surrounding it. Director Fury graced the middle of it, calling out orders to stabilise the take off. Rows upon rows of computers and agents scattered the craft. Grey noticed a tall, efficient looking woman standing next to Fury, also delegating tasks and commands to the agents while swiping over an iPad. She had a hard expression, dark brown hair, and an angular face. Her uniform was engraved with the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo – another spy? Grey thought. She looked up, and locked eyes with Grey.

“Dr. Caron,” she inched over after giving out the last of her orders, holding her hand out. “Maria Hill, Deputy Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., thank you for joining us.”

Grey shook her hand, giving her a small smile, “I would say thank you for having me, but I think it’s too soon to tell.”

Hill smirked at her words, “well, with any luck, you recruits can help us out.”

“I’ll try my best.” Grey felt the familiar feeling of anxiety tighten within her. These people really needed their help. Hill moved to discuss things with Fury, and Grey made her way to lean against the large conference table. As she was invisible most of the time, Grey made a habit of observing everybody she saw. This made her people reading skills almost perfect, so she decided to people watch.

Hearing the murmur of new voices, Grey watched as Natasha led in two men, both of whom she recognised from the files. One, Dr. Bruce Banner, leading scientist whose work Grey had focused her dissertation on while she was at university. She watched him carefully, noting how he stayed away from the large groups of agents and the twitch in his jaw. She made a mental note not to scare him by accidently appearing in front of him. His expression was kind, although incredibly nervous.

She turned her attention to the other man. Steve Rogers, Captain America. A massive block of pure muscle. Grey smiled as he saw the awe in his eyes, not so different from hers, as he looked around the space. She could tell he was still stuck in the past, from his clothes to the way that he held himself. That was interesting to Grey. His childlike curiosity was calming to her, and of course, he was attractive – he was practically engineered to be. His blond hair and all-American good looks would make any girl swoon.

“Gentleman.”

Nick Fury walked back into the Bridge, Hill now standing in his spot, and headed towards the two men. Grey observed Steve slip $10 into Fury’s hand as he walked through the aircraft.

“Doctor, thank you for coming,” he walked over to shake Banner’s hand, who had been stood relatively close to her. Grey noted that Bruce was reluctant to shake, his own hand trembling slightly, “there’s somebody I’d like you to meet.” He gestured towards Grey, who Bruce had only just noticed.

Grey held her own hand out, trying to make herself as calming as possible, even though she was definitely as nervous as he was, “it’s incredible to meet you, Dr. Banner. I’m a big fan.”

A hint of recognition sparked from behind Bruce’s glasses, and he gave an uneasy smile as he shook her hand, “yeah, I know you, Dr. Caron – I read your file. Invisibility, right?” Grey noted that his hands stopped twitching, but he still pulled away after the quickest handshake.

“Right,” Grey didn’t let show the fact that she was internally buzzing from the fact he knew her name, “I studied you when I was in uni – your work is incomparable.”

“I’m honoured,” he said to her, flashing her a rare smile, “I’m absolutely fascinated by your-”

Before he could finish, a stoic voice interrupted him, “already charming the ladies, Dr. Banner?”

Steve Rogers was stood behind Grey, a smile on his face as he introduced himself to her with another gentlemanly shake of the hand. Up close, Grey could see why most of the planet was obsessed with him. He truly was the model citizen – piercing blue eyes and a crooked smile ready to make anybody want to fight in a war.

“It’s an honour to meet you, Captain.”

“It’s nice to meet you too, and it’s Steve. Captain makes me feel old,” he raised his eyebrow at her voice, “you’re British.”

Grey raised an eyebrow at the accusation, “and you’re American.”

Steve chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes though, “just caught me by surprise, I thought this was New York’s fight.” In truth, her accent had wrapped its way around Steve’s throat and almost made him choke up. All he could hear was Peggy.

“I guess Fury needed some British charm for the team.” Grey shrugged, an easy smile on her face. These two weren’t so bad – her nerves were quietly dwindling, and it was becoming easier to talk.

Her and Steve turned their attention back to the conversation at hand – how long Bruce would be on the Helicarrier for. Like Grey, he didn’t seem to enjoy flying.

“Once we get our hands on the Tesseract, you’re in the wind.” Fury was saying. For some reason, Bruce didn’t look convinced. His brow was furrowed slightly and the tremble was back.

“And where are you with that?”

Another agent walked to the group, a man who looked to be about 40 with a kind face. Grey had already been introduced to him – Phil Coulson, another top S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, “we’re sweeping every wirelessly accessible camera on the planet. Cell phones, laptops. If it’s connected to a satellite, it’s eyes and ears for us.”

Grey frowned and shook her head, declaring “that’s not going to be quick enough”, at the same time as Natasha spoke up, “that’s still not going to find them in time.” They glanced over at each other, and Grey smiled slightly. She already knew that all Natasha wanted to do was find Clint.

Bruce looked down at Grey, and thought for a minute, sliding his glasses off his nose, and biting the end in thought, “you have to narrow the field. How many spectrometers do you have access to?”

Fury shrugged, “how many are there?”

Grey’s eyes suddenly lit up as she clocked onto Bruce’s train of thought, before she said quickly, “call every lab you know, tell them to put the spectrometers on the roof and calibrate them for gamma rays,” Grey nodded up to Bruce, “if my research is right, Dr. Banner here is the best person to go to for gamma rays.”

The scientist nodded, a bashful expression on his face, “she’s right. I’ll rough out a tracking algorithm based on cluster recognition. At least we can rule out a few places. Do you have somewhere for us to work?”

Grey raised an eyebrow at the ‘us’ before the twisting feeling started to rise in her stomach. She couldn’t say no to working with Bruce Banner in a state of the art laboratory, but she hadn’t touched one in three years. What if it happened again? Unbeknownst to her, she had flickered slightly in worry as she debated whether to take Bruce up on his offer – Steve noticed.

After a quick internal battle with herself, Grey decided she would at least try. It was the first impression she would make on Bruce, and the team as a whole.

“Agent Romanoff, would you please show the Doctors to their laboratory?”

Bruce and Grey turned to follow Natasha, and Grey grinned nervously when she mentioned how S.H.I.E.L.D. had ‘all the toys’. She let out another breath, and murmured to Bruce, “a theory can be proved by an experiment.”

He smiled slightly at her words, “but no path leads from experiment to theory.”


	4. IV

Grey had never seen such high tech equipment. Even though the laboratory she worked in was quite well funded, they could’ve never afforded this level of paraphernalia. As she looked curiously at each instrument, she noticed a majority of them had the familiar ‘Stark Industries’ logo engraved on them. She didn’t like the man, but she had to hand it to him; Stark knew his science.

Of course, she hadn’t tested it out. Grey was too full of anxiety to actually use the equipment. Bruce was almost the same, but he seemed a lot more comfortable using the new technology than her. She observed Bruce’s algorithm, offering her own thoughts when he asked for them, and she scratched out a few testable equations for his tracking process.

“So, are you still a palynologist?” he asked after a period of silence.

Grey nodded, giving him a smile from her seat across from him, “palynologist _and_ stereo chemist,” she felt a swell of pride when she spoke about her achievements – she didn’t spend six years in university for nothing.

“I read about your work in your file. You’re incredibly smart. I particularly enjoyed your paper on how the atomic structure of four leaf clovers technically does make them lucky.”

Grey snickered into her work, “I wrote that when I was 23 and almost definitely drunk.”

“It is scientifically correct though, which is the amazing thing,” Bruce pushed his glasses back up his nose as he flicked up hologram after hologram. After a second, he turned to Grey with a nervous expression, “I’ve been meaning to get in contact with you for a while, actually.”

“Really?” Grey put down her pencil, turning to Bruce in confusion, “why?”

Bruce shuffled, a sure sign he was nervous, “uh- you don’t have to answer if you didn’t want to – but I just wanted to know more about – about your accident.”

The silence that enveloped them at that moment was more tense than comfortable, and Grey saw Bruce blush with embarrassment, “I’m sorry – it was stupid of me to ask.”

“No, it’s not stupid,” Grey gave Bruce a small smile, “just caught me by surprise.” Truthfully, Grey was more than shocked. The minute Bruce had said ‘accident’ she had frozen up, her normally sharp mind turned to mush. The only thing she could think, feel, smell, was fire. But she took a deep breath to steady herself, trying to quell her slamming heartbeat.

“You already know that my job was to study the most _fascinating_ subject of dust. More specifically, I specialised in plant pollen. Paired with stereochemistry, my boss had me looking at the spatial arrangement of atoms in specific plant species. We had this huge ongoing project on this rare flower we had imported from Fiji, called _Medinilla Waterhousei_. There’s this legend attached to it of a young girl who was forbidden to marry the love of her life, so she cried so much her tears became the flower.”

Bruce’s mouth was half open as he listened, enthralled. Grey hadn’t noticed, but she was fading in and out of vision while she spoke, parts of her even becoming static, like an old T.V.

“One night, I was working some overtime. It was about 1am, I was the only one there. I was investigating what happened when you burnt the pollen,” she sighed slightly, as if the next few words were painful to say, “somebody forgot to tell me it was an abnormally flammable substance.”

Unable to help himself, Bruce took a sharp intake of breath. Grey smiled slightly at him, despite the fact it felt like her heart was about to beat out of her chest, “so unprofessional. Anyway, the fire spread unlike any fire should. It wouldn’t go out, I tried everything but it wouldn’t. The entire lab burnt down.”

“But you’re… alive?” Bruce could tell that his question was stupid, but he couldn’t get his head around it. A fire as dangerous as the one Grey was describing would’ve surely killed her.

Grey let out a short chuckle, moving to push her hair away from her face nervously, “so are you.”

Bruce looked at her in silence, a confused expression on his face. Grey continued, trying to stop the tremble in our voice, “we’re very similar, Dr. Banner, when it comes to our respective accidents. That much gamma radiation should’ve killed you, just as this fire should’ve killed me. But instead my body adapted. My burns stretched all the way into my D.N.A., causing it to bind together. This completely shifted my atomic structure, and now…” Grey disappeared, before reappearing again, “I’m invisible.”

“That…” the Doctor was lost for words, still trying to wrap his head around it all, “…that can’t be scientifically possible.”

“Well, I’m living, breathing, proof. Here,” Grey pulled one of the high-res microscopes closer to her, alongside grabbing a cotton bud from the utility box. She swiped it over her cheek, before depositing the sample onto a slide, and slotting it into space. She looked through the lens, adjusting the focus, before she moved over, “be my guest.”

Bruce looked at her incredulously and bent over the microscope, fitting his eye into the lens. He refocused it slightly, before he began to zoom in. After a quick second, an audible gasp left his lips, and he shot back up to stare at Grey.

“That’s impossible. Cells can’t work like that. This – this completely changes years’ worth of scientific research. They’re completely stitched together.” Amazement was evident in Bruce’s tone, which made Grey feel a little bit less of a freak show than she usually did.

“Like I said,” Grey shrugged as Bruce went back for a second look, “it messed my body up. No scars, my hair regrew within a year, just pure invisibility. I couldn’t figure out how to control it until about four months later.”

The Doctor pulled away from the microscope and frowned, “didn’t anybody look for you?”

That comment made Grey pause. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. In fact, it had been three years, and she still hadn’t gotten over the way her family had just thrown her away like that. Her mother had died when she was a baby, and she wasn’t too close to her father, but she would’ve thought he’d have mourned. But instead. he moved on. Grey swallowed, before shakily answering Bruce’s comment, “the police just assumed my body was burnt so badly that it turned to ash. According to national records, Grey Caron is deceased. But S.H.I.E.L.D. obviously knew otherwise.”

Bruce just stared helplessly at her, feeling more awkward than he did before, but he also felt dread settled in his stomach after hearing her final sentence. He coughed slightly to ease the tension, “I guess we do have a lot in common.”

Suddenly Natasha burst through the door, an air of urgency surrounding her. Grey and Bruce broke off their conversation, looking over at her expectantly. She stared at them both, slightly out of breath, having obviously run to their lab. “We have a match. Eighty percent. You’re up, Umbra.” Grey faltered slightly, before she cleared her throat and pushed the microscope back to Bruce.

“Do whatever you want with this, Doctor, just don’t clone me.” she headed over to Natasha, who handed her a handgun.

“This is your gun, like I said before, it’s fitted with the same tech as your suit so it should disappear alongside you. Fury said you’re fully weapons trained?”

“You got it,” Grey blanched at Natasha’s questioning expression as she slipped the gun into the holster on her hip, “I had a fun childhood.”

Natasha gave her a knowing look before handing her an intercom. Grey clipped it into her ear and tapped it until she heard the crackling of feedback, “can you hear this?” The spy’s voice was loud and clear.

“Perfectly.”

The two of them boarded the same quinjet that brought Grey to the Helicarrier, and she looked around it in disgust, “I didn’t think I’d be getting back in this so soon.”

“Don’t like flying, ma’am?” Steve had followed them onto the jet, looking every inch the righteous hero in his new and improved Captain America uniform (“Coulson helped design it,” he had confessed).

“Not the biggest fan, Captain. Nice helmet, by the way,” Grey gave him a quick smile, pushing down the nerves which were rising deep inside her, again. She flickered in and out of sight as she sat down and buckled herself up, “where are we going this time?”

“Uh- thanks, and Stuttgart, Germany,” Steve secured his shield onto his back, watching curiously as Grey kept vanishing in front of him, “this guy isn’t even trying to hide. The villains I know don’t work like that.”

Grey raised an eyebrow at him, “this guy sounds like a laugh. Loki, right? A proposed God of Mischief.” She remembered the file’s description of him – conniving, dangerous, and evil.

Steve gave her an amused look, “maybe I should’ve actually read the files.” Grey snorted slightly into her hand, glad for the distraction from the take off.

“I would’ve thought that would’ve been right up your street,” Grey giggled a little – she loved a bit of banter, “all lovely and old-fangled, nothing too modern.”

The Captain raised his eyebrows slightly, caught off guard. He wasn’t used to modern women – they were a lot more confident than they were in the 40s. Of course, Peggy was as self-assured as any man, but she was hard and enduring. Grey was different – she was soft, but still witty, and unafraid to tease a little. He liked being able to bite back, and he replied in a sarcastic tone, “how old are you again?”

Grey smirked at the obvious opening, “let’s not bring age into this, Captain, because you will lose, no questions asked.” Even Natasha let out a quiet ‘huh’ at that one, and Steve leant back in his chair, shaking his head.

“You’re something else.”

The rest of the Quinjet ride was spent discussing the plan. Grey whined at the decision for Steve to jump out of the plane with her on his back but agreed when Steve agreed he would compensate her for any mental damage. She would stay invisible, acting as backup for Steve if Loki overpowered him at all. The end goal was to have Loki in custody with as minimal damage as possible.

“We’re just over Stuttgart, guys. He looks like he’s making some Hitler-esq speech,” Natasha’s voice sounded over the intercom. Grey looked out of the window, seeing a large crowd of people gathered in front of a man in a… crown? “Cap, Umbra, get out there.”

“Ready to get up close and personal with the future, Cap?” Grey smirked as she buckled herself attached to Steve’s uniform and hoisted herself onto his back, immediately vanishing.

Steve laughed as he steadied himself at the exit of the jet, “readier than I’ll ever be.”

However, Grey didn’t hear his reply. She only heard the screaming of the wind as they leapt out of the back of the plane and the thud of Steve’s shield as they landed, right in front of Loki, God of Mischief, who was sending an angry energy beam zooming right at them.


	5. V

The crowd immediately scattered as Steve’s shield reflected Loki’s blast back at him, knocking him flat on his back. Grey heard him groan as she detached herself from Steve’s back, and scuttled around the crowd to position herself behind him, her pistol trained on his back as she kept herself invisible as she waited for a chance to intervene.

“You know, the last time I was in Germany and saw a man standing above everyone else, we ended up disagreeing.”

Grey smirked; she’d seen Steve punch Hitler in the face multiple times on the old Captain America tapes in her history class.

She watched carefully as Loki stood up and dusted himself off. He was slim, with hollowed out, pale cheeks and piercing blue eyes. His hair was a deep, raven black, barely noticeable under the extravagant, horned, golden helmet he wore. Loki was easily over six foot, but his height wasn’t what made him so threatening. It was the genuine aura of madness that surrounded him, and not to mention the golden sceptre in his hand. The tip of his weapon burnt blue, seeming to glow brighter with Loki’s words. His lips pulled back into a smile as he spoke, his accent surprisingly British, which made Grey blink. “The soldier,” he chuckled, a sneering sound from the back of his throat, “the man out of time.”

“I’m not the one who’s out of time.” Steve positioned his shield back in front of him as Grey steadied herself. She felt an uneasy feeling swirl in the pit of her stomach as the quinjet hovered above them. Natasha spoke over the speaker built into the jet; her tone had a slight edge to it.

“Loki, drop the weapon and stand down.”

For a moment, Grey thought he really would surrender, and she lowered her gun slightly. All of a sudden, Loki shot a blast at the quinjet – one which Natasha only just missed as she managed to swerve in time. Refocusing her position, Grey quickly shot a bullet in Loki’s direction, which skimmed the side of his extended hand. He let out a snarl as he whirled around, aiming his sceptre. Grey dodged the shot, focusing every cell in her body to remain invisible. Loki paused for a moment, staring in her general direction, before he was knocked off his feet by Steve.

“Umbra, are you hit?” Natasha’s voice appeared in her ear.

Grey breathed heavily, trying to keep her gun trained on Loki, “I’m fine – I missed by a hair,” she followed them closely, hoping to God Loki hadn’t heard her voice.

The clanging of metal against metal filled the air as Loki and Steve went toe to toe. Grey itched to throw a punch in but she knew she couldn’t spoil her position just yet. She cursed when Steve’s shield got thrown cross the plaza. Trying to keep her gun in the air, she inched towards it as Steve and Loki continued the fight.

“Steve’s vulnerable,” Natasha instructed. Grey gave a nod, trying to discretely push the shield back into reaching distance for Steve.

Suddenly she heard a grunt – Grey looked back up, and Loki had Steve on his knees, the end of his sceptre pressed harshly to the back of the Captain’s head. The God breathed heavily, and growled, “kneel.”

At that point, Grey didn’t care about giving away where she was. She reached down and grabbed the shield, hoisting it into her arms as she ran towards the two men. She revealed herself momentarily and tossed the shield to Steve.

“Not today!”

Loki’s eyes widened, but he only saw her for a split-second before she vanished again, and Steve had grabbed his shield and twisted himself out of under Loki’s sceptre. He kicked the God square in the jaw, using the moment of distraction to his advantage.

Natasha’s voice crumbled to life again in her ear, “nice work, Umbra. This guys all over the place.” Grey regained her composure, bringing up her gun once more when Steve was thrown halfway across the square again.

She was about to break cover again before something made her stop. She concentrated for a moment, closing her eyes to pin down the sound.

AC/DC?

“ _Agent Romanoff. You miss me_?”

The arrogant, American accent sent a twinge of annoyance through Grey as the opening notes to ‘ _Shoot to Thrill’_ played through her headset, and she tried her hardest not to roll her eyes. He just had to make an entrance.

Both Steve and Loki paused their scramble on the floor when the music blasted through the air, along with the metallic sound of an engine. The three of them looked up to see a scarlet and gold streak fly through the air. The suit put its hands up, blasting Loki across the plaza – Grey had to move half an inch to make sure the God didn’t slam into her. The figure landed with a loud clang, the music dying down as it aimed it’s reactors and a number of rockets at Loki’s head. A steely, animatronic voice emerged from it.

“Make your move, Reindeer Games.”

Steve had finally gotten up from the fight, jogging over to stand next to the suit; he was breathing heavily, but otherwise unhurt. Grey watched as he eyed the man next to him with an air of distaste and raised her eyebrows. That was definitely going to work out well.

As Loki raised his hands in surrender, the mirage of his golden helmet and armour fell away. The cold end of the gun pressed into the back of his head, and he tensed slightly. Grey reappeared in front of the three men and kept her eyes on the God kneeling in front of her, “I’d stay still if I were you.”

Iron Man lowered his hands, “good move.”

Grey’s eyes flicked up to him when he said that, as her and Steve said simultaneously, “Mr. Stark.”

“Captain,” Tony Stark nodded to Steve, but he was still facing Grey. His hand lifted up and his mask flicked open, revealing that all so famous beard that infuriated Grey for no good reason, “Umbra,” he looked her up and down, quite obviously, and grinned, “nice suit.”

All Grey could do was bite her cheek, and smile.

\---------------------

Tony Stark was every ounce of annoying as Grey expected him to be. Of course, he was a playboy, through in through. She had to admit, he was definitely more handsome in real life than he was on the T.V., but that didn’t make up for the fact that he already grinded on her gears like nobody’s business. He had begun hounding her before they had even got onto the quinjet – it was exhausting.

“So, we haven’t been properly introduced. I’m Tony, or Anthony if you really want. Mr. Stark works at a stretch, but it’s not my favourite-”

Grey sighed, just wanting to get on the jet and back to the Helicarrier, “I know who you are.”

Tony looked pleased at her words as he walked beside her, “the question is, why didn’t I know who you were until yesterday evening?”

“Unlike you, Stark, I prefer the quiet life.”

“Then why on Earth would you join this rag-tag team? Doesn’t England need its superhero to… fix people’s bad teeth and make tea?”

Once again, Grey bit her tongue to stop herself from retorting. Steve watched them from where he was placing handcuffs around Loki’s wrists, securing them tightly. In turn, the God examined him, his eyes deepening.

The ride back to the Helicarrier was tense. Well, as tense as it could be with the additions of a captured God and an egotistic billionaire. Grey sat across from Loki; her eyes were narrowed as she kept watch on him. He didn’t look up at her, staying quiet and stationary. It was odd, what villain let’s themselves get seized so humbly?

“I don’t like it.” Steve murmured with a frown on his face. Tony raised his eyebrow and nodded towards Loki, who hadn’t moved.

“What? Rock of Ages giving up so easily?”

Grey was keeping herself occupied by gently phasing parts of her body in and out of vision, testing the endurance of her suit. Luckily, the moment Tony uttered that line coincided with when she made her own head disappear – her amused smirk was hidden. She couldn’t help it, Loki’s hair really did look like something straight out of the 80s. She returned when she composed herself, her face a neutral expression once again.

“I don’t remember it ever being that easy,” Steve continued, “this guy packs a wallop.”

“Steve’s right,” Grey chimed in quietly, “he’s barely done anything but throw a few sparkles our way.”

Tony shrugged slightly, turning towards Steve, “well, you are pretty spry, for an older fellow. Don’t you agree?” He glanced at Grey, who ignored him, before turning back to the Captain, “what’s your thing? Pilates?”

“What?” Steve didn’t look impressed.

Grey crossed her arms, trying to keep her attention on Loki. “Leave him alone, Stark.”

“It’s like callisthenics. You might have missed a couple of things, you know, doing time as a ‘Capsicle’.” Grey missed the way Tony’s eyes darted to her to see if she appreciated her joke.

The tension in the air thickened. Grey felt her chest tighten slightly when Loki’s eyes jumped up to lock with hers. He didn’t move, or say anything, but the hint of a smirk was on his face. Grey cleared her throat, tuning in on the two superhero egos having a size contest.

“Fury didn’t tell me he was calling you in.” Steve said coldly.

Grey decided now wasn’t the best time to tell Steve that it was in the reading.

Tony glanced over at where Natasha was sat, talking to Fury on her earpiece, “yeah, there are a lot of things Fury doesn’t tell you,” his tone had a serious edge to it.

Grey suddenly jumped as a loud crack of thunder was released above them, unintentionally turning invisible as she felt every nerve ending in her body spark. It wasn’t her favourite type of weather, by far.

“Where’s this coming from?” Natasha called out, sounding concerned. A louder crash sounded with a flash of lightening, which illuminated the whole ship. Steve and Tony peered out of the windows, as did Loki. His eyes were wide, filled with an emotion Grey hadn’t seen before. Fear? Intrigue? He was unreadable.

“What’s the matter – scared of a little lightening?” Steve asked, raising an eyebrow at him. Loki shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“I’m not overly fond of what follows.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, something heavy hit the roof of the quinjet, causing the superheroes inside to be jolted around. Grey, not expecting it, cursed as she hit the floor of the jet. Another bolt of lightning crackled around them, and Grey felt herself flicker. It felt like electrical charges were running all though her body as she glitched.

“Shit!” Tony shouted from the front of the plane. Grey looked over; he winced as a few sparks flew from his reactor on his hand. She frowned – did something in the jet spark out? He shook off the moment, grabbing his helmet from the side and slipping it back on, while Steve grabbed his shield. Grey clambered back onto her feet, an uneasy feeling surrounding her.

Tony, ever the hero, stalked forward and opened the rear hatch of the quinjet. Grey flinched as cold air rushed in, looking incredulously at the American in front of her.

“What are you doing?” she called out as Tony continued to march towards the open door. Before he could answer, something landed on the doorway with another loud clang. Grey couldn’t believe her eyes – it was a man. A mountain of a man with long golden hair and arms that would rival any bodybuilders. He was dressed strangely, with a flowing red cloak and silver armour, and he carried a heavy looking hammer. His odd sense of style sent a shock of recognition through Grey, and she turned to look at Loki.

She didn’t know a God could look so thoroughly alarmed.

The unwelcome visitor sized up Tony, before sauntering his way into the jet. Grey jumped out of the way when Tony was flung halfway through the plane, and the man charged towards Loki. The three of them couldn’t do much to stop him from grabbing the God by the neck with a thunderous expression. He swung his hammer around and threw himself back out of the quinjet, Loki in hand.

Tony groaned as lifted his head, the hammer obviously having done its job. Grey offered him a hand to help him up. He brushed himself off, looking back at the two of them, “and now there’s that guy.”

“Well, shit.”


	6. VI

“Okay, so we lost Loki. What do we do now?”

Grey couldn’t stop herself from flickering in and out of vision – it always happened when she was panicking.

“Another Asgardian?” Natasha called out as she tried to stabilise the jet, tugging on the controls.

“Thor, God of Thunder,” Grey called out, clinging onto the side of the plane, “Loki’s brother. You can tell from their shared sense of style and this lovely weather we’re having.”

Steve winced as the jet lurched again, looking confused, “that guy’s a friendly?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Tony turned back to the open hanger, “if he frees Loki or kills him, the Tesseract’s lost.” With that, Tony readied himself to fly out of the back of the aircraft.

“Stark, what are you doing?” Grey questioned, concern written on her face, “we need a god damn plan of attack – we don’t know what this guy can do!” Tony looked back at her, and despite the fact his mask was covering his face, she could tell he was smirking at her.

“I have a plan. Attack.”

And with that, Tony shot out of the back of the jet, a blast of light following him. Grey groaned, feeling infuriated, “he’s such a dickhead.”

“You got that one right,” Steve grumbled as he grabbed a parachute. He looked over at Grey and jerked his head for her to get on his back, “we better go and make sure he doesn’t blow something up.”

“I’d sit this one out, guys,” Natasha yelled out, “these guys come from legends, they’re basically Gods.”

“Someone’s got to keep a gun on Loki if Stark thinks he’s going to win against Literal Jesus,” Grey shouted back. Steve snorted at Grey’s comment.

“There’s only one God, ma’am, and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t dress like that.”

The Captain patted Grey’s hand which was tightly gripping the buckle of his parachute and threw himself out of the plane. If she’d known how much jumping-out-of-aeroplanes there would’ve been in this job, Grey would’ve thought twice about saying yes.

The two of them landed with a thump in a clearing dusted with a few trees. Grey peered around in the dark, her eyes slowly adjusting to it.

“You find Loki. Keep him where we need him and I’ll stop Stark and Thor from incinerating each other.” Steve ordered as he unclipped his parachute. His tone was stern, showing every inch the Captain he was.

Grey gave a mock salute and nodded as she quickly reloaded her gun, “yes, sir.”

She vanished, making her way to where she’d seen Thor and Loki land in a crumpled heap. She tried to be as quiet as she could, keeping her gun aimed. Finally, she saw the God sitting quietly by a boulder, calmly twiddling his fingers. She frowned – he was alone, why hadn’t he run?

Grey silently tiptoed so she was in front of him, her gun trained on his chest. This time, if he tried anything, she wouldn’t miss. She sighed, moving her head to crick her neck.

“I know you’re there.”

Grey stopped with her head tilted, her eyes wide as she stood there in surprise. How could he see her? She watched as Loki smiled, looking up in her direction, but he didn’t meet her eyes. He couldn’t see her; he could only _sense_ her.

“I can see that power inside you,” he continued; his piercing eyes moved around, trying to find something to focus on.

Grey let her invisibility melt away, revealing herself to him. She kicked his foot, “shut up.”

Loki raised an eyebrow, obviously expecting her to be intrigued at his mystical words, “you dare tell a God to ’shut up’?”

“Yes. Shut up.”

He chuckled – a low, menacing sound from the back of his throat, “you, my dear, are by far the most interesting of the Avengers,” Grey stayed silent, but she couldn’t help the want to hear more, “they’re confusing, aren’t they? Emotions. They make everything much harder.”

“What?” Grey felt her heart speed up, and she scoffed, “you’re chatting some shit tonight. And don’t call me ‘dear’, it’s weird. Only old people say that.”

Loki merely peered up at her from his seat on the floor, “believe me, I’m telling no stories to you. I can read Midgardians like a genius reads a book. The Iron Man has already rooted himself in your heart. But what’s even more interesting is that power growing within you. I wonder when it’ll show itself?”

He anticipated her to blanch – be scared, even, but he was _not_ expecting the loud laugh that erupted from her lips. Grey sniggered loudly, moving a hand to clasp over her mouth as she tried to compose herself. “Emotions?” she giggled, “for Stark? You’re crazier than I thought you were.”

“You forget, I am the God of lies. I know when I am being told one,” Loki’s expression turned to a glower, evidently annoyed that his words didn’t have the affect he wanted them to, “especially, weak, Midgardian tales.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever Spikes,” Grey smirked, moving the gun up to his head, “you just stay there nice and quiet now.”

In reality, Grey’s mind was reeling. What _power_ was he talking about? The God was just trying to rile her up – he was the Trickster God for a reason. She pushed those thoughts to the far, far, back corners of her mind. After a moment, the familiar sound of the Iron Man suit ran through the sky, and Grey’s stomach twisted when she saw Tony heading towards them.

“Reindeer Games try anything?” he asked as he landed, his voice robotic from his helmet

Grey shook her head, avoiding looking at him. Loki watched them carefully, “no, just take him back. Make sure he’s secure.”

“Thor’s working on that, we’re buddies now,” he stepped closer to her, before his helmet slid back, “you okay?” Grey looked up at him, almost seeing real concern in his eyes, “you look a little flushed.”

Grey swallowed, lowering her gun, “I’m fine. Let’s just get back, I’m sure Fury is desperate for a little one on one time together.”

Steve and Thor (who seemed to make the super soldier look a little more like _just_ a soldier) soon joined them by Loki, Steve mentioning that Natasha had landed the Quinjet not too far from where they were standing. Grey nodded as she listened, before rubbing her forehead and wincing as a headache overtook her. It seemed like the last few hours were finally catching up with her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a couple of sparks shoot out of the side of Tony’s suit.

“What did that fucking hammer do to me, Shakespeare?”

“If it had done damage, Metal Man, you would not be functioning,” he shrugged, before nodding towards Grey, “thank you for keeping watch over my brother, my lady. I deeply regret any pain he has caused you.”

“Uh- anytime,” she was a little taken aback by his formality, but also by his kindness. “I’m Grey.”

“I am Thor, Son of Odin. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” when he shook Grey’s hand, a shock went through her like an electric charge, and she vanished in surprise. Thor looked at where she once stood in amazement, before looking back at Steve and Tony, “you didn’t tell me you had a witch in your ranks.”

Grey reappeared, a little dazed from his electrical hands, “not a witch.”

“My apologies. A sorceress, then?”

“Not that either. I’m just a plain human,” Grey smiled slightly, before adding, “with a little something extra.”

Thor looked over her, before smiling widely, “astounding. Midgardians continue to impress me.” Behind him, Loki rolled his eyes.

Tony had been watching the encounter with a raised eyebrow, and before long he felt an annoying tug within him – almost as if he’d wished Thor would stop making Grey smile like she was. He pushed it down, just as he repressed all of his emotions.

“This is all very nice, but now we need to get back to the plane. You know, maybe get him into a pair of handcuffs.” He gestured for Grey to do that, and she quickly bound his wrists, avoiding the God’s eyes as she handed him over to Thor. They all began to walk back to where Natasha had landed, and Grey couldn’t help but feel like the whole team was watching her.

On the journey back, Grey was exhausted. She realised she hadn’t slept in over two days – she’d barely had any sleep the night Fury recruited her, and it had been all systems go since she had landed on the Helicarrier. She always preferred to be obscured when she slept, so she spent the whole ride back invisible. The team knew she was there; she’d left one of the files on her lap to make sure nobody would sit on her. The three of them observed her quietly.

“Your sorceress is interesting,” Thor regarded, his voice low, “she has a great power inside of her that she can’t control.”

Steve and Tony exchanged a glance and looked back at the God with an anticipatory expression.

“How do you know?” Steve questioned, concern growing inside of him.

Thor’s face turned grey, “I can sense it, and therefore my brother can as well. We must make sure he is kept away from her.”

Tearing his eyes away from the floating file, Tony swallowed, “when you say ‘great power’…”

“One bigger than her vanishing act.” Thor uttered solemnly. The three descended into silence, each of them with a lot on their mind. In the corner of the jet, one of the wires sparked and short cited.


	7. VII

Thor looked at Coulson with a sombre expression as the Agent discussed something. Grey watched them curiously from her seat at the consulting table. Her nap had done wonders; she felt enormously less anxious now that Loki was in S.H.I.E.L.D.’s hands. That meant the job was almost done; they just needed to find the cube and be done with it. Although, she felt a twinge of sadness inside her at the thought of going back to her empty apartment.

Her ears pricked up when Coulson said a familiar name. She couldn’t help but overhear their conversation.

“As soon as Loki took the Doctor, we moved Jane Foster,” Coulson had an image of a woman, around Grey’s age, on the screen, “they’ve got an excellent observatory in Tromsø.”

Grey’s eyebrow furrowed slightly. How did Thor know Jane? Of course, Grey knew her from her days as a scientist – Jane was one of the world’s leading astrophysicists, and a genuinely good friend. Obviously, Grey hadn’t seen her in years.

Thor approached the table after a minute and offered Grey a small smile. The knowledge that Jane was safe seemed to have calmed the God.

“Why were you asking about Jane Foster?” Grey wondered, and she grinned at the flush which filled the God’s cheeks.

“She’s… important to me,” he peered at her with thoughtful eyes, “how do you know her?”

Grey thought back to when she had first met Jane; an amazingly smart scientist, it was an honour her coming to Grey’s laboratory. She needed Grey’s team to analyse some tumbleweed she’d found in New Mexico, “knew; we worked together for a few months. It was ages ago, though.”

“Well, any friend of Jane’s is a friend of mine.” He placed a large hand on her shoulder and squeezed it softly. Grey smiled up at him; maybe not all Asgardians were murderous psychopaths.

Someone cleared their throat, and Thor and Grey fell silent. The screens embedded in the conference table showed Loki being placed in a large glass cage, with Fury overseeing him. Maria watched from the control deck, and the rest of the team sat quietly. Grey swallowed slightly as she watched the footage, her anxiety once again growing. She flickered in and out of focus as Loki looked far too comfortable in his cell.

Tony was only half paying attention to the (probably important) footage in front of him. He was distracted. In all honesty, Tony wasn’t even going to agree to this mission. Sure, he would’ve helped Fury out with tech or money in exchange for him fixing his palladium poisoning the year before, but that was it.

But then he’d seen her name in the file.

The others, Tony had already heard of (apart from Thor – Tony didn’t make a habit of fraternising with aliens). Steve Rogers practically lived rent free in his head since before he could even remember; Natasha had already made herself a presence when she’d pretended to be his lovely new assistant; and it was hard to not know the Hulk. Call him selfish, but Tony didn’t want to work with these people, but then he’d read those four words – “ _Dr. Grey Caron / Umbra_ ”, and he was sold.

It wasn’t just that she was pretty, even though she was. Sparkling, soulful eyes which were a mismatch against that razor sharp tongue of hers. Brown hair that Tony was dying to dig his fingers into, and an attitude to rival his own. It was her _mind_ ; she was smarter than she gave herself credit for, and Tony needed a bit of humility in his life.

He couldn’t focus on the camera footage with her glitching like that next to him. Tony reached over and placed a hand over hers, hoping to calm her down enough for her to stay _still_. It seemed to work. She turned those big brown eyes towards him in slight shock, but she stayed visible.

“Cool it.”

Grey seemed to push his hands away slightly, but she wasn’t too opposed to having Tony distract her. In reality, she was thinking about what Loki had said up on that rock, about a so called ‘power’ growing inside of her. There wasn’t any reason to make something like that up – what was wrong with her? Grey took a breath and focused back on the scene playing on the hologram before her.

“ _It’s an impressive cage. Not built, I think, for me_.” Loki had chuckled as he wandered around the glass cylinder they had locked him in.

Fury had a grave expression on his face, “ _built for something a lot stronger than you_.”

Back in the briefing room, Grey watched as Bruce stared at the screen intently. Unbeknownst to her, Thor had fixed Grey with the same steely look.

“ _Oh, I’ve heard_ ,” Loki turned to the camera, his eyes narrowed with an evil smile on his face, and hissed, “ _a mindless beast. Makes play he’s still a man. How desperate are you, that you call upon such lost creatures to defend you?”_

“ _How desperate am I? You threaten my world with war. You steal a force you can’t hope to control. You take one of my best men, and you force me to recruit a girl who just may not be ready to join us yet_ ,” Grey tensed as Fury said that, looking down at her lap as she felt multiple pairs of eyes dart to look at her, “ _you talk about peace and you kill ‘cause it's fun. You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did_.” She didn’t realise Tony’s hand was still in hers until he squeezed it. Luckily from where they were sat, nobody else could see.

“ _Ooh. It burns you to have come so close. To have the Tesseract - to have power, unlimited power - and for what? A warm light for all mankind to share, and then to be reminded what real power is_.”

The team were all listening intently to Loki’s words. Maria stared at the screens; her brow furrowed in concentration. Steve looked slightly overwhelmed, but otherwise stoic, as did Thor. Natasha kept flashing her eyes towards Bruce, who had a distinctly green tinge about him.

Fury looked at Loki staunchly, before he turned and left, “ _well, let me know if Real Power wants a magazine or something_.”

Loki smirked, before growling menacingly, “ _you brought the real power, she just doesn’t know it yet_.”

The monitor the group were watching on went black as Fury left the room, and they all sat there in stunned silence. Even Grey was shocked. What did he mean, ‘ _real power’_? That’s the second time he had mentioned it. She felt cold, clammy, and her chest was tight, but she seemed to come to her senses and pushed Tony’s hand off her lap. He looked dejected.

Bruce cleared his throat, before looking up and smiling weakly at everyone, “he really grows on you, doesn’t he?”

Steve rubbed his hand over his jaw, thinking, “Loki’s going to drag this out. So, Thor, what’s his play?”

“He has an army called the Chitauri. They’re not of Asgard or any world known. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the Earth, in return, I suspect, for the Tesseract.”

Grey spoke up, straightening a little as she joined the conversation, “they’re a race of shape shifting aliens that claim to be part of the ‘immune system’ of the universe – they want to wipe out disorder and free will wherever they find it.”

Thor looked over at her with raised eyebrows, a surprised expression on his face, “how do you know this? The Chitauri aren’t of Midgardian knowledge.”

“I spend a lot of my time on conspiracy theory websites,” she shrugged, “sometimes they’re not just theories. A lot of people think the British royal family are Chitauri.”

Steve’s face was a mix of awe, confusion, and seriousness, “an army? From outer space?” Natasha shifted uncomfortably in her seat at the statement.

“So he’s building another portal,” Bruce mused, looking over at Steve. “that’s what he needs Erik Selvig for.”

“Selvig?” Thor looked up, a spark of recognition on his face as he heard the name.

“He’s an astrophysicist. I’ve worked with him before on some studies. He knows Jane.” Grey offered.

“He’s a friend.” Thor said gravely, obviously upset at the treatment of his companion.

Natasha looked over at Thor, obviously trying to calm his distress, “Loki has Selvig under some kind of spell,” Natasha explained, “along with one of ours.” She went quiet.

Steve looked around at the table, “I want to know why Loki let us take him. You saw it, Grey, he barely put up a fight. He’s not leading an army from here.”

“I don’t think we should be focusing on Loki,” Bruce tittered uneasily, “that guy’s brain is a bag full of cats, you could smell crazy on him.”

Thor glared over at Bruce and stepped forward menacingly, “have care how you speak. Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard, and he’s my brother.”

“He’s killed eighty people in two days.” Natasha said.

Thor’s demeanour changed to sheepish as he muttered, “he’s adopted.”

Grey smiled a little at the quip Natasha had said, but it was slightly forced. In truth, she felt sick and nervous. She knew she didn’t belong here, but now she was stuck. She should’ve stayed in London, where it was safe and secluded. Here, she was as open as an exposed wire, ready to spark.

Bruce tactfully changed the subject, “I think it’s about the mechanics. Iridium- what do they need the iridium for?”

“It’s a stabilizing agent,” Tony leant back in his chair, looking around at the group. He’d been quiet during the conversation, more focused on how he could literally feel the anxiety radiating from Grey, but after he saw her smile, he relaxed again, “it means the portal won’t collapse on itself like it did at S.H.I.E.L.D.,” he stood from his chair and moved over to Thor, brotherly tapping him on the shoulder, “no hard feelings Point Break, you’ve got a mean swing. Also, it means the portal can open as wide, and stay open as long, as Loki wants.”

Grey watched him with raised eyebrow as he started wondering around. She observed as Tony walked up to Fury’s control panel and began to pretend to conduct the ship, “raise the mizzenmast. Jib the topsails…” the agents closest to him gave him confused looks. He called out an agent playing Galaga nearby, before covering one eye and looking confused, “how does Fury even see these?”

“He turns.” Grey deadpanned.

“Sounds exhausting,” Tony winked at her, before he carried on prodding at all of the instruments and continued his physics lecture, “the rest of the raw materials Agent Barton can get his hands on pretty easily. Only major component he still needs is a power source. A high energy density, something to kick starts the cube.”

Unbeknownst to the team, Tony slipped a small device onto the console. As he turned away, it began to do its job.

“When did you become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics?” Maria asked with an unimpressed expression.

Grey knew the answer to this question, “last night, I assume. Stark does the very most to be the smartest in the room.”

“Shadow’s right. Doesn’t take much to become a genius,” Tony paused, glancing around at the team, “even though I already am one. The packet, Selvig notes, the extraction theory papers. Am I the only one who did the reading? I assume Shadow did – she’s the only one who seems to know what’s going on around here.”

“That’s not her alias, Stark,” Natasha said from her seat, raising an eyebrow, “you really should be using the right one.”

Tony rolled his eyes as Steve continued to conversation, “does Loki need any particular kind of power source?”

Bruce paced for a moment as he thought, “he would have to heat the cube to a hundred and twenty million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier.” Grey downturned her brow as she mulled over Bruce’s words, trying to deduce what Loki’s exact plan was.

“Unless Selvig has figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunnelling effect…” Tony replied as he moved to where Bruce was standing.

“If he could do that he could achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet.” Grey contributed, and she felt a twist in her stomach when Tony gave her a surprised look. She fixed her face into a glare, but it didn’t deter the playboy.

Tony’s faced broke out into a grin, “finally, people who speak English.”

“Is that what just happened?” Steve asked Grey, confused. She shrugged, instead focusing on the two scientists.

Grey watched as Tony and Bruce shook hands, and she saw the glimmer in each of their eyes as the mutual respect they shared showed.

“It’s good to finally meet you, Dr. Banner,” Tony said sincerely, “your work on anti-electron collisions is unparalleled... and I’m a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster.”

Grey forced down a laugh as Bruce blushed and mumbled a quiet, “thanks.”

“Dr. Banner is only here to track the cube, Dr. Caron is assisting him. I was hoping you might join them.” Fury, who had appeared silently, announced.

Tony looked over at Grey with a small smirk, “I’d be happy too.”

Steve cleared his throat, trying to diffuse the weird tension in the room, “let’s start with that stick of his. It may be magical, but it works an awful lot like a H.Y.D.R.A. weapon.”

“I don’t know about that, but it is powered by the cube,” Fury mentioned, “and I would like to know how Loki used it to turn two of the sharpest men I know into his personal flying monkeys.”

Thor glanced at the director, confused, “monkeys? I do not understand.”

It was silent for a moment before Steve burst out, a proud smile on his face, “I do! I understood that reference.”

Tony rolled his eyes, before he peeked back at Grey and saw she had fondness in her face. He frowned, a feeling of jealousy rising up in him. He coughed slightly, before he moved to place his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it slightly.

“Shall we play, Doctor? Shadow?”

“This way.”

Behind them, the man Tony called out continued to play Galaga.


	8. VIII

Grey watched Tony out of the corner of her eye as she sat at one of the desks in the laboratory, scratching out equations on her pad of paper. Sure, S.H.I.E.L.D. had all the tech you could possibly need, but Grey still preferred to use the traditional methods. Her and the other two scientists were meant to be investigating Loki’s weapon, but Tony seemed content with being annoying, and Grey was fine with invisibly spying on him. She _didn’t_ like him, she kept thinking to herself. He was just intriguing – he wasn’t as bad as the press made him out to be.

“You know what, Shadow?” Tony said, swiping away his algorithms from one of his screens, “it's fun watching your pen move by itself, but it would be nice to see you once in a while.”

“Maybe I don’t want you to see me, Stark.”

“You didn’t mind me back in that conference room,” he sent her general direction a wink, and she scoffed, “as much as that British accent is adorable, your face is even better.”

“Fuck off.”

Bruce broke their bickering with an awkward cough, “sorry to interrupt... but the gamma readings are definitely consistent with Selvig’s reports on the Tesseract. But it’s going to take weeks to process.”

“If we bypass their mainframe and direct a reroute to the Homer cluster, we can clock this around six hundred teraflops.” Tony said, twirling an electric rod in his hands. Bruce smiled worriedly.

“All I packed was a toothbrush.”

Grey reappeared in her seat, gave the doctor a reassuring smile, “don’t worry, Dr. Banner, I don’t even know what I packed. Fury only told me I was coming the night before.”

Tony sent her a grin, before he looked back at Bruce, “you know, you two should come by Stark Towers sometime. Top ten floors, all R&D. You’d love it, its candy land.”

“What, that eyesore in New York?” Grey smirked as Tony scowled at her and repeated her sentence in an awful impersonation of her voice. Bruce let out a chuckle as well.

“Thanks, but the last time I was in New York I kind of broke... Harlem.”

“Well, I promise a stress free environment. No tension. No surprises.” Tony promised.

Grey rolled her eyes and mumbled, “sure.”

Suddenly, Tony poked Bruce with the prod he had been fiddling with, sending an electric shock through him. Bruce let out a yelp of pain, and Tony watched him closely, curious, “nothing? What about you, Shadow?” He turned and threateningly pointed the electric stick at her.

“You come near that thing and I’ll put you in a choke hold.”

“Is that a promise?”

“Hey! Are you nuts?” Steve had walked in, and his expression was unimpressed.

“Jurys out. You really have got a lid on it, haven’t you?” Tony said to Bruce in disbelief after deciding Grey would see her threat through, “what’s your secret? Mellow jazz? Bongo drums? Huge bag of weed?”

Grey choked on the gulp of water she had just swallowed.

Steve sighed angrily as he patted Grey’s back while she coughed, “is everything a joke to you?” When he was sure she was okay, he moved closer to where Tony and Bruce were working.

“Funny things are,” Tony replied breezily, shrugging. When Grey finally cleared her throat, she moved to snatch the electric prong out of his hands and quickly snap it. Tony jumped as she did it, his eyes widening, “those things are $500 each.” 

“I’m sure they have insurance.” Grey said coolly before sitting back down.

Steve sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, “threatening the safety of everyone on this ship isn’t funny,” he seemed to realise what he said before looking up at Bruce apologetically, “no offense, Doc.”

“No, it’s alright,” Bruce said, looking down at the sceptre, “I wouldn’t have come aboard if I couldn’t handle pointy things.”

Tony smacked him affectionately on the back, “you’re tiptoeing, big man. You need to strut.”

“And you need to focus on the problem, Stark.” Grey said, and she smirked in satisfaction when she heard Tony gasp indigently.

“Do you think I’m not?”

Steve shot him a raised eyebrow as he crossed his arms, and Tony continued to plead his case.

“Why did Fury call us in – why now, and why not before? What isn’t he telling us? I can’t do the equation unless I have all the variables,” he shrugged. Grey frowned immediately, looking over at Tony in confusion. What did he mean?

Steve voiced her very question, “you think Fury’s hiding something?’

“He’s a spy. Captain, he’s THE spy. His secrets have secrets,” Tony gestured to Grey and Bruce, “it’s bugging them too, isn’t it?”

Grey immediately vanished to avoid being asked, and Bruce stumbled over his words as he scratched the back of his head, “uh... I just wanna finish my work here and...”

“Doctor? Grey?” Steve asked, looking defeated. A beat passed before Bruce sighed, taking of his glasses.

“’A warm light for all mankind’ – Loki’s jab at Fury about the cube.”

“I heard it.”

Bruce pointed to Tony, “well, I think that was meant for you. Even if Barton didn’t tell Loki about the tower, it was still all over the news.” Tony held out a bag of blueberries, as if rewarding Bruce for his contribution.

“The Stark Tower? That big, ugly-" Steve stopped when Tony glared at him, “...building in New York.”

“That’s what I said,” Grey’s voice came from where she had been sitting, which was now an empty space, “sorry, Stark. It’s the truth.”

“Well, you’re never coming for a sleepover.” Tony mumbled, sulking.

Bruce raised an eyebrow at Tony, before continuing, “it’s powered by an Arc Reactor, a self- sustaining energy source. That building will run itself for what, a year?”

Tony smirked slightly, his ego returning to him as he shrugged nonchalantly, “it’s just the prototype. I’m kind of the only name in clean energy right now,” he heard a scoff from Grey’s seat, “that’s what he’s getting at.”

The scrape of a stool being pushed back filled the air, and Grey reappeared next to Tony, who jumped at her sudden appearance, “so why didn’t S.H.I.E.L.D. bring you in on the Tesseract project? I mean, what are they doing in the energy business in the first place?”

“I should probably look into that once my decryption program finishes breaking into all of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s secure files,” Tony said innocently, popping a blueberry into his mouth; he offered the bag to Grey, who declined. He kept shuffling the berries in her direction until she finally took one with a roll of her eyes.

Steve had a confused, taken aback expression on his face, and struggled for words, “I... I’m sorry, did you say...?”

“JARVIS has been running it since I hit the bridge,” Tony explained, looking extremely happy from himself, “in a few hours we’ll know every dirty secret S.H.I.E.L.D. has ever tried to hide,” he held out his blueberry bag with a smile, “blueberry?”

Steve stared at him with an unreadable expression, “yet you’re confused about why they didn’t want you around?”

Tony shrugged, “an intelligence organization that fears intelligence? Historically, not awesome.”

Grey had been watching the conversation from the side. Just like in the quinjet, she could feel the tension in the air – these two couldn’t go five minutes without bickering. She glanced at Bruce, who raised an eyebrow and shrugged. She looked back at the boys, before remembering what Loki had said about the ‘power inside her’. She shivered slightly before she spoke, “I think Loki’s just trying to wind us up. We should stop taking everything he says so seriously.”

“This is a man who means to start a war,” Steve said incredulously, looking between her and Tony, “you three have been in here, what, messing around with electric rods and blueberries? If we don’t stay focused, he’ll succeed.”

Grey could feel the wave of protection which rolled of Tony as he pointed a finger at Steve, the smirk wiped of his face, “you don’t talk to her like that.”

Steve shifted his shoulders, “ma’am, I’m sorry, but we have orders, we should follow them.”

“It’s fine,” Grey said quietly, “you’re right. We do have orders. We’re here for one job.”

“Following is not really my style.” Tony said, popping another blueberry into his mouth. Steve sighed, a tight smile on his lips.

“And you’re all about style, aren’t you?”

Tony looked offended by Steve’s comment, “of the people in this room, which one is A, wearing a spangly outfit, and B, not of use?”

“You’re B, Stark.” Grey stated as she inspected her nails. Tony looked slightly put out.

Bruce sighed from the back, and he said seriously, “Steve, tell me none of this smells a little funky to you?”

Grey watched as Steve broke down a little, his eyes becoming confused. She knew he was torn by the possibility of S.H.I.E.L.D. not being the good people he thought they were. But she knew, as an obedient soldier, he’d ignore it. She had to make sure they all stayed on the same side – and that meant figuring out what Fury was hiding.

Steve took a breath, before his eyes hardened again, “just find the cube.” He turned and walked out of the lab. Tony smirked, before he threw another blueberry in Grey’s direction.

She threw him the middle finger and followed Steve.


End file.
